At last HOTWATER in a BONGO and FREDA!

[digitalgypsy]

Hello chaps,
Has anyone seen this page from the JAL Imports website?: http://www.jalimports.co.uk/motorhome.html

At the top of page there is a small little unit which apparently is used for 'instant hot water'. Has anyone come across this type of thing? As with all with JAL products, he only installs them on in-house converts.

Hope you guys have seen something similar!

[g8dhe]

Its a Whale heater also available from here http://www.plsgroup.co.uk/index.php?_a= ... uctId=2205
Details here http://www.whalepumps.com/rv/siteFiles/ ... 191_v1.pdf
Its Gas with 12v supply or Mains it seems 8L capacity roughly a foot cube (258x330x330mm)
One price for it was £440 ...

I think I'll stick with a kettle thanks!

[Driver+Passengers]

Looks like this one... Whale Water Heater 8ltr. I'm sure there will be others - Eberspacher Hydronic Water Heaters, for example.

I wonder if there is a small radiator unit that you could couple to something like this...? My ideal would be hot water for washing up and heating with a final boil on a stove for drinking. Having a heat exchanger somewhere on the vehicle to absorb coolant/exhaust heat has always interested me, too. Anyway, I digress.

[g8dhe]

Trouble is you would have to open it up and try to fit an exchanger inside -nightmare I would imagine.
I still reckon an insulated box with a bongo heater matrix mounted inside and connected into the coolant system - maybe replace the rear heater unit ? Something about 10 litre capacity, then when the coolant is flowing it would heat the water inside, when the engine stops then there is little heat loss because the coolant isn't flowing and the insulation should keep it hot for a reasonable period.

[digitalgypsy]

Thanks for info...
Kettle FTW!

[scanner]

Or fit one of these in the cooling circuit - remember to bleed it properly afterwards.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/15-Litre-Sure ... 53ede9da86

It will also heat the water from 240v if you have a hook-up.

[g8dhe]

That's more like the idea, it looks as if it would need insulating however, but is the sort of size where it could be slung underneath the bongo.

[mikeonb4c]

Trouble is you would have to open it up and try to fit an exchanger inside -nightmare I would imagine.
I still reckon an insulated box with a bongo heater matrix mounted inside and connected into the coolant system - maybe replace the rear heater unit ? Something about 10 litre capacity, then when the coolant is flowing it would heat the water inside, when the engine stops then there is little heat loss because the coolant isn't flowing and the insulation should keep it hot for a reasonable period.

A man after my own (scanner also). It's daft not taking advantage of all the free heat from the engine (although Mazda thought to do so by making it mid engined )

[helen&tony]

Hi
I vote kettle, and I bung it on the barbi, which tends to be kept in for most of the day!...but then , we like rough camping...and the occasional purchase of the odd caravan always sees us returning to canvas and van.
Cheers
Helen

[mikeonb4c]

Hi
I vote kettle, and I bung it on the barbi, which tends to be kept in for most of the day!...but then , we like rough camping...and the occasional purchase of the odd caravan always sees us returning to canvas and van.
Cheers
Helen

Ah but this about throwing ideas around, out throwing them put ha ha. And the idea of not wasting engine heat (or anything) is interesting. Narrowboat owners certainly think so, with their calorifiers

[helen&tony]

Hi
Mike...
I'm all for a bit of free heat...and it's a great idea using engine heat in the same way as marine calorifiers...BUT, I need warm water for washing up, and if the Bongo hasn't moved, it's down to the kettle, as the engine heat is only there when you've stopped. I never use hot water for washing in the morning, and only use a kettle-full for a shower/ hairwash using a shower bag , so running an engine to get hot water is wasteful.
I suppose it varies according to how we view camping in a van...plenty of folk like hookups and heaters, but even in a caravan, I don't use a heater , even in minus temperatures inside I often used a kettle of water rather than use the water heater in the van, albeit both gas and electric. We often heat a pan of water in the kitchen at home rather than use the woodburner or the immersion, so it's not a case of being negative on ideas of heating in a Bongo, it's just that I don't see using resources when there is not a need . I've lived in a caravan for a couple of times in my life, so I've a knack for conserving energy, and just enjoy the very thought of not using anything unnecessarily .
Cheers
Helen

[scanner]

That's more like the idea, it looks as if it would need insulating however, but is the sort of size where it could be slung underneath the bongo.

They say in the spec that it is highly insulated

The boiler is insulated in a polyurethane jacket, which will retain the heat for up to 24 hours after the engine has been switched off.

Although "up to" could mean it goes cold in 5 minutes

[g8dhe]

I didn't register that bit! It must be in another jacket outside the insulation then, I saw the bit about the stainless steel mounting bands and assumed that they were around the copper cylinder, hence the thought that it would need extra insulation.

[corblimey]

I use a cheap one of these

Hot water on tap; works a treat!

[digitalgypsy]

Great shout on the kettle corbliney!! I flipping love Bongos and Bongo Fury